Lighting systems used to illuminate athletic fields such as baseball fields, football fields, soccer fields and the like generally require the installation of light fixtures 20-120 feet above the ground. The light fixtures are often installed in arrays mounted at the top of a support pole. If any light fixture in a lighting array malfunctions, it may be difficult to determine the source of the failure without the use of a crane or ladder capable of reaching the light fixtures.
Lighting systems which use high intensity discharge (HID) lamps require the use of ballasts, capacitors, and various wires interconnecting the components of the lighting system. The failure of a lamp, ballast, capacitor, or wire may result in the failure of the lighting system.
Current test methods involve disconnecting each component to test them individually or swapping each component in and out of the lighting system to locate any defective components. This procedure requires electrical power to be applied to the system, and/or the use of special meters and the technical specifications for each component in order to determine the operability of each component. Furthermore, these tests may isolate problems in a particular component, but cannot detect problems in the wiring between the components without the use of a crane or boom truck to reach the light fixtures at the top of the pole.
Therefore, these previous attempts to locate faults in lighting systems are expensive, time-consuming, and must be performed by an electrician due to the requirement of a live power test. Additionally, the testing of HID lighting systems requires a specialized knowledge not held by all electricians. Thus, previous diagnostic testing systems and methods required a qualified electrician possessing the appropriate knowledge and special meters to test HID lighting systems.